Wow this sport has really died!

[m8pow]

Haven't even been on here in quite awhile, years. Remember 15-20 years ago there were tons of new posts daily, today the newest is 2 days old. Guess they really did price most people out. Know I'd never spend 20k plus for a sled. Hey sled manufacturers how's that business model working out for you?

 

[TopshelfGin]

I don’t think that conclusion can be drawn from the activity on a forum like this. Social media is a major player now days. Despite supply chain issues sales of sleds remains strong and registrations continue to rise.

And while I also think prices are kinda crazy, everything has gone up. Look at vehicle prices, ya can’t buy a truck for 30k anymore either.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Finnlandr]

Haven't even been on here in quite awhile, years. Remember 15-20 years ago there were tons of new posts daily, today the newest is 2 days old. Guess they really did price most people out. Know I'd never spend 20k plus for a sled. Hey sled manufacturers how's that business model working out for you?

I'm not sure how much of this is snowmobile sales, but it looks like it might be working out pretty well.

 

[Pinchecharlie]

Cool kids only do instagram now. My kids think iam a fossil for doing forums

 

[volcano buster]

There used to be a ton of "build" threads. For the most part, manufacturers put those "add-ons" in the mix at the factory. Now, there is discussion on which model to buy due to the packages they come with. Short of a riders choice of storage bag(s), I think a new sled is more usable than a "modded" one used to be straight out of the box.

 

[Sage Crusher]

Haven't even been on here in quite awhile, years. Remember 15-20 years ago there were tons of new posts daily, today the newest is 2 days old. Guess they really did price most people out. Know I'd never spend 20k plus for a sled. Hey sled manufacturers how's that business model working out for you?

Well, just goes to show ya -that ( not pointing you out directly) that you haven't been on here for awhile- . I get asked that a lot in my shop why I still am active in the SW forum.

I feel it is great to give and receive advice from others, and chuckle a bit from questions that seem simple to us old timers.
Ya a lot of the newer stuff doesn't allow ( or need) to many add on's to enhance performance, but it sure help's with the information received on here, to focus on what people are having issues with and to keep up on them when they roll into my shop or see someone in the parking lot at the trailhead.

The daily popular topics I receive in my email from Christopher, makes life easier, and still enjoy the comradery with members I have met or haven't seen in a looooooooong time.

 

[plumnuts]

Haven't even been on here in quite awhile, years. Remember 15-20 years ago there were tons of new posts daily, today the newest is 2 days old. Guess they really did price most people out. Know I'd never spend 20k plus for a sled. Hey sled manufacturers how's that business model working out for you?

you might be able to conclude SnoWest Forum is declining but to jump to the conclusion snowmobiling is dying based upon the number of posts... faulty decision making.

 

[PSI 800]

maybe its a low snow thing right now, hard to have a lot of buzz if hardly anybody can go ride. We have no snow currently where i live, and it doesnt look good in the long range forcast either

 

[jcjc1]

plenty of well-heeled sledders to afford new sleds, or not so well off ones making bad financial decisions.

 

[tomx]

I think forums are dying not the sport. My local snowpark used to be empty at 8:30am, now its packed by 7:30. "Secret zones" are tracked by 9am. Facebook groups are really popular now as well.

Plus Snowest has gotten super lame with all the ads and pay to play. I subscribed for couple years because I wanted to keep in touch with a couple of the forums, but now I can connect with a better community on facebook that is truly local.

 

[christopher]

I think forums are dying not the sport. My local snowpark used to be empty at 8:30am, now its packed by 7:30. "Secret zones" are tracked by 9am. Facebook groups are really popular now as well.

Plus Snowest has gotten super lame with all the ads and pay to play. I subscribed for couple years because I wanted to keep in touch with a couple of the forums, but now I can connect with a better community on facebook that is truly local.

Pay to play and all the ads go away, not to mention a host of other user improvements all kick in.
Last time I checked there is NO SUCH OPTION on FaceBook.

 

[christopher]

Haven't even been on here in quite awhile, years. Remember 15-20 years ago there were tons of new posts daily, today the newest is 2 days old.

You might want to check your technique for how you look for NEW POSTS here on SNOWEST.

New posts

www.snowest.com

When I look, I see 17 new discussions started in the last 24hrs.

Is that what we used to see back in 2010?
No, of course not.
Back then SnoWest was THE prime destination for all things sledding on the internet.
Now there are literally hundreds of different destinations.

But what keeps SnoWest unique in the sledding space is the DEPTH OF INFORMATION and the DEEP long term ongoing discussions of topics that always remain relevant to riders.

 

[bnorth]

Forums are dying in all my hobbies. As far as sledding the staging areas near me have never been busier.

 

[jcjc1]

I think Snowest is great but snow and mud isn’t too shabby and no ads.

 

[christopher]

I think Snowest is great but snow and mud isn’t too shabby and no ads.

Time for you to UPGRADE your user account then.

 

[jcjc1]

I don’t mind some ads. the aggravation is that having ads degrades the user experience. it’s a shady way to get people to upgrade but I get it, nothing good is free.

 

[christopher]

I don’t mind some ads. the aggravation is that having ads degrades the user experience. it’s a shady way to get people to upgrade but I get it, nothing good is free.

Considering the cost of upgrading, its MIGHTY CHEAP.
And its been here since 2009, its not anything new.
If you haven't been a premium member in the past, give it a try.
If you spent any amount of time around here you will instantly love the difference in how the forums works for you.

 

[hansenmac]

I first used snowest without a subscription but could only read a limited amount of posts if i remember correctly. I decided to do the lifetime membership since it cost the same as 3 single year memberships. that was ten years ago and i think it was 90 bucks. if you bitch about 90 bucks but buy a 10 15 20K sled a trailer to put it on or in a truck to pull that drive hours to a spot get a hotel for nights or weeks etc etc theres not too many legs for you to stand on. I think the sport is declining in some aspects because everyone lives in a town or city now. I live in the country and have land to ride on but if you live in town you need space to store them then have to drive somewhere to ride them so it gets harder to do and eventually you just dont. And with all the things on peoples phones and computers and tv's and video games people spend less time wrenching and prepping. I notice this with people my age and younger im 33. I dont know that the sport is dying but its hard for me to see it expand much other than new markets like europe.

 

[christopher]

And with all the things on peoples phones and computers and tv's and video games people spend less time wrenching and prepping. I notice this with people my age and younger im 33. I dont know that the sport is dying but its hard for me to see it expand much other than new markets like europe.

That right there is a hard cold FACT.
There is just SOOOO MUCH MORE TO DO in the middle of winter now than there was 10 or 20 years ago

 

[koolaid]

I don't think snowmobiling is dying, even with the prices of new sleds. The sno-parks are busier than ever.

Yes, Snowest use to be huge. The forum was so busy, even use to have an annual ride at Island Park. Right at the heighth of its popularity, they decided to start charging to use the site. Worst decision ever! Why charge the people who made the site great and gave it content?

Today, it is pretty much a pain to use with the constant pop up ads and other issues. I still think forums are superior to Facebook for getting information out there and to navigate. Some of us will never become part of social media.